Drivers In 2-bus Accident Convicted

April 01, 2009|By Dan, Parsonsdparsons@dailypress.com 247-7840

JAMES CITY — The drivers of two school buses that collided in James City County on March 4 were found guilty Monday of charges related to the crash that sent 17 Warhill High School students to the hospital.

Brenda Page, 35, of Lanexa, was convicted of reckless driving in Williamsburg/James City County General District Court, a Class-1 misdemeanor that carries a $200 fine plus court costs.

Page - who was driving a bus headed for Toano Middle School when it was rear ended by a bus going to Warhill High School - pleaded not guilty.

The accident occurred around 7 a.m. March 4 on Old Stage Road near Barn Elm Road.

Lynett Tooley, 38, of Lightfoot, who was driving the Warhill-bound bus, was convicted of following too closely and has paid $61 in fines and court costs, according to court records.

Page testified Monday that she was driving between 10 and 15 mph on a road where the speed limit is higher because her bus was belching smoke. Tooley said she was unable to gauge her distance from the other bus because of the smoke.

Billy Estes, a transportation shop foreman for Williamsburg-James City County Schools, said the bus, an older diesel model, needs to be warmed up for at least half an hour, especially in cold weather, before being driven or it will smoke as Page described.

Page testified that she was familiar with the procedure, but had idled the bus for only about 20 minutes that morning.

For failing to properly warm up the bus, driving too slowly and failing to move the bus from the roadway, a judge found Page guilty of reckless driving resulting in an accident.

Page has appealed the conviction to Circuit Court.

Both buses were considered totaled and removed from the school system's fleet, said schools spokesman Greg Davy.

The 17 Warhill High School students aboard Tooley's bus were taken to Sentara Williamsburg Regional Medical Center to be treated for minor injuries after the accident, but all were released March 4.

Page and Tooley were placed on paid administrative leave, but Davy couldn't be reached Tuesday to answer questions about their employment status.